The Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Grace Ayensu-Danquah has called for stronger use of technology in malaria prevention, urging African countries to focus on stopping the disease at its source rather than relying mainly on treatment.
She made the remarks while delivering the keynote address at a regional workshop on Tech Enabled Larval Source Management held at The Palms by Eagle Hotel in Accra.
The two day event brought together health officials, technical experts and innovators from across the continent.
The workshop was organised by the National Malaria Elimination Programme of the Ghana Health Service in partnership with AGAMAL and SORA Technology.
It was held under the theme Prevention at the Source.
In her address, the Deputy Minister stressed Ghana’s commitment to shifting toward proactive prevention strategies that target mosquito breeding sites before malaria transmission occurs.
“If we are to end malaria, we must outpace it,” she stated.
She explained that advances in technology now make it possible to predict, detect and respond to malaria risks with greater precision.
She added that prevention at the source is both a strategy and a responsibility.
The Deputy Minister commended the collaboration between public health institutions and technology partners. She emphasised that eliminating malaria will require cooperation among countries, shared expertise and strong political support.
She noted that the workshop demonstrated Africa’s growing role in developing its own solutions to public health challenges.
Participants were introduced to a range of digital tools designed to improve larval source management.
These included drone mapping and artificial intelligence systems to help identify mosquito breeding grounds, digital micro planning to guide resource allocation using real time data, and real time monitoring systems to support faster field interventions.
The event also served as a platform for knowledge exchange, with stakeholders discussing how digital innovation can improve malaria control efforts. Officials indicated that such approaches could help make prevention more targeted, efficient and community focused.
By: Jacob Aggrey
